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Both Canada and the United States in the 1950s had plans to build and fly UFO-like aircraft- Project Silver Bug. But they were not alone. A decade before, the Nazis were doing something very similar.That the Nazis had been working to perfect a circular-shaped aircraft that would broadly fit the classic flying saucer description is a theory that does have some merit. The following US Air Force report of 3 January 1952 from Brigadier General W.M. Garland to General Samford, Air Force Director of Intelligence, full demonstrates this:

The continued reports of unusual flying objectsrequires positive action to determine the nature and origin of this phenomena.

It is logical to relate the reported sightings to the known development of aircraft, jet propulsion, rockets and range extension capabilities in Germany and the USSR. In this connection, it is to be noted that certain developments by the Germans, particularly the Horten wing, jet propulsion, and refueling, combined with their extensive employment of V-l and V-2 weapons during World War II, lend credence to the possibility that the flying objects may be of German and Russian origin. The developments mentioned above were completed and operational between 1941 and 1944 and subsequently fell into the hands of the Soviets at the end of the war. There is evidence that the Germans were working on these projects as far back as 1931 to 1938. Therefore it may be assumed that the Germans had at least a 7 to 10 year lead over the United States.

In 1954, according to the CIA:

The Germans built:

1. Miethe Diskus, (Dr. Richard Heinrich Miethe) two models, one ovoid one circular. Both had internal spinning engines which were a special kind of radial jet engine.

2. Schriever "Flugkreisel" developed at Prague airport, spinning blades like a helicopter but powered by a single turbo jet or hypergolic rocket (as in Me 162) engine. This craft never flew due to instability.

3. Habermohl Saucer, (Dipl. Ing. Otto Habermohl) this was a similar design but more stable and actually flew.

Designs number 1 and 3 were in a competition sponsored first by the Luftwaffe then by the SS (when they took the program over). Georg Klein, who supervised for the Luftwaffe and then became the second in command to Dr. Ing. Hans Kammler, reports that Kammler picked the Habermohl model because it was cheaper and much easier to build. All designs were air-defense systems.

The development, (relating to flying saucers) which had cost millions, was almost complete by the end of the war. No doubt the existing models were destroyed, although the plant in Breslau, where Miethe worked, fell into the hands of the Russians, who removed all the material and technical personnel to Siberia, where further work on these "flying saucers" has been carried on with much success. Schriever just managed to get out of Prague in time, Habermohl, on the other hand, must be in the Soviet Union.

The former German designer Miethe is in the USA and, as far as can be determined, is designing "flying saucers" for A.V. Roe & Co. The machines, which have been observed to date, have diameters in the order of 16, 42, 45 and 75 metres and they are supposed to develop a speed of up to 7,000 km/hour.

~Rudolf Lusar, German Weapons and Secret Weapons of the 2nd World War and their Further Development

A German newspaper (not further identified) recently published an interview with George Klein, famous German engineer and aircraft expert, describing the experimental construction of 'flying saucers' carried out by him from 1941 to 1945. Klein stated that he was present when, in 1945, the first piloted 'flying saucer' took off and reached a speed of 1,300 miles per hour within 3 minutes. The experiments resulted in three designs: one designed by Miethe, was a disk-shaped aircraft, 135 feet in diameter, which did not rotate; another designed by Habermohl and Schriever, consisted of a large rotating ring, in the center of which was a round, stationary cabin for the crew. When the Soviets occupied Prague, the Germans destroyed every trace of the 'flying saucer' project and nothing more was heard of Habermohl and his assistants. Schriever recently died in Bremen, where he had been living. In Breslau, the Soviets managed to capture one of the saucers built by Miethe, who escaped to France. He is reportedly in the US at present.

Similarly, in 1947, a US citizen wrote the following letter to the FBI in 1947:

Recently I have heard and read about reports of disc-shaped aircraft, or whatever they are, in our Western regions. They reminded me of a nearly forgotten incident in Germany, after the war. I report this to you because I feel this may be of international scope. My buddy and I went on pass to see a friend of his. One evening the three of us were driving along some back roads when I sighted a strange-looking object in the sky from eight to ten miles to our front and approximately 5,000 feet high. I immediately stopped the jeep for a better look. The object rapidly came toward us, descending slowly. About a mile away it stopped its horizontal motion but continued a slow-oscillating descent similar to a descending parachute. Then it stopped in a spiral motion. Immediately I drove to where it had dropped. It took almost five minutes to reach the place but we saw nothing. After ten minutes of cruising around the area it became too dark to see so we went back to town. I am not sure my companions saw this because it happened so quickly it could easily have been missed, but I described what I had seen so vividly that they were as excited as I was. My first impression was that it was a cloud, but it was traveling at right angles to the wind. The locale of this incident was approximately 120 miles north west of Habberbishophiem. If necessary, I will swear to the authenticity of this and to the shape of the object.

In that same year, 1947, the FBI also interviewed Edwin M. Bailey of Stamford, Connecticut, on his theories about man-made UFOs.

According to the FBI:

Bailey prefaced his remarks by stating that he is a scientist by occupation and is currently employed at the American Cyanamid Research Laboratories on West Main Street in Stamford, Connecticut, in the Physics Division. Bailey further indicated that during the war he was employed at MIT, Cambridge, Massachusetts, in the Radiation Laboratory which Laboratory is connected with the Manhattan Project. Bailey advised that he is thirty years of age and is a graduate of the University of Arizona. Bailey stated that the topic of flying saucers had caused considerable comment and concern to the present day scientists and indicated that he himself had a personal theory concerning the flying saucers. Prior to advancing his own theory, Bailey remarked that immediately after the conclusion of World War II, a friend of his [censored], allegedly observed the flying saucers from an observatory in Milan and Bologna, Italy. He stated that apparently at that time the flying saucers had caused a little comment in Italy but that after some little publicity they immediately died out as public interest. Bailey stated that it is quite possible that actually the flying saucers could be radio controlled germ bombs or atom bombs which are circling the orbit of the earth and which could be controlled by radio and directed to land on any designated target at the specific desire of the agency or country operating the bom

In July 1952, the FBI was informed of the following that had a direct bearing on CIA knowledge of Soviet-designed UFOs:

[Source] said that more recent reports have been received from representatives of the Central Intelligence Agency in Southern Europe and Southern Asia to the effect that the Russians were experimenting with some type of radical aircraft or guided missile which could be dispatched for great distances out over the sea, made to turn in flight and return to the base from which it was launched. He related that this information was extremely worthy of notice as experiments in this country have so far only developed to the point where we are concerned with delivering a missile to the required point of impact and no consideration has been given to imparting to that missile the ability to return. [Source] also advised that it is a known fact that the Russians are attempting to develop some type of nuclear energy, that they received a wealth of information concerning nuclear energy at the time of their occupation in Germany, and that they have at their disposal a limited supply of fissionable materials. [Source] pointed out that the Russians have some very capable scientists in the field of atomic energy and that, in addition thereto, they took into their custody some of the most-advanced and capable scientists of the German nation.

Moving on to 1957, FBI agents in Detroit interviewed a man with knowledge of Nazi-built UFOs, who was… “born February 19, 1926, in the State of Warsaw, Poland, and was brought from Poland as a Prisoner of War to Gut Alt Golssen approximately 30 miles east of Berlin, Germany, in May, 1942, where he remained until a few weeks after the end of World War II. He spent the following years at Displaced Persons Camps at Kork, Strasburg, [sic] Offenburg, Milheim and Freiburg, Germany. He attended a radio technician school at Freiburg and for about a year was employed in a textile mill at Laurachbaden, Germany. He arrived in the United States at New York, May 2, 1951, via the 'SS General Stewart' as a Displaced Person. According to the man, during 1944, month not recalled, while enroute [sic] to work in a field a short distance north of Gut Alt Golssen, their tractor engine stalled on a road through a swamp area. No machinery or other vehicle was then visible although a noise was heard described as a high-pitched whine similar to that produced by a large electric generator. An 'SS' guard appeared and talked briefly with the German driver of the tractor, who waited five to ten minutes, after which the noise stopped and the tractor engine was started normally. Approximately 3 hours later in the same swamp area, but away from the road where the work crew was cutting 'hay', he surreptitiously, because of the German in charge of the crew and 'SS' guards in the otherwise deserted area, observed a circular enclosure approximately 100 to 150 yards in diameter protected from viewers by a tarpaulin-type wall approximately 50 feet high, from which a vehicle was observed to slowly rise vertically to a height sufficient to clear the wall and then to move slowly horizontally a short distance out of his view, which was obstructed by trees. This vehicle, observed from approximately 500 feet, was described as circular in shape, 75 to 100 yards in diameter, and about 14 feet high, consisting of dark gray stationary top and bottom sections, five to six feet high. The approximate three foot middle section appeared to be a rapidly moving component producing a continuous blur similar to an aeroplane propeller, but extending the circumference of the vehicle so far as could be observed. The noise emanating from the vehicle was similar but of somewhat lower pitch than the noise previously heard. The engine of the tractor again stalled on this occasion and no effort was made by the German driver to start the engine until the noise stopped, after which the engine started normally. Un-insulated metal, possibly copper, cables one and one-half inch to two inches in diameter, on and under the surface of the ground, in some places covered by water, were observed on this and previous occasions, apparently running between the enclosure and a small concrete column-like structure between the road and enclosure. This area was not visited by the man again until shortly after the end of World War II, when it was observed the cables had been removed and the previous locations of the concrete structure and the enclosure were covered by water. The man stated he has not been in communication since 1945 with any of the work crew of 16 or 18 men, consisting of Russian, French and Polish POWs, who had discussed this incident among themselves many times However, of these, he was able to recall by name only one, no address known, described as then about 50 years of age and presumed to have returned to Poland after 1945.”

Another FBI document concerns a man who was interviewed at the Miami Office of the FBI on 26 April 1967. He stated:

Sometime during 1943, he graduated from the German Air Academy and was assigned as a member of the Luftwaffe on the Russian Front Near the end of 1944, he was released from this duty and was assigned as a test pilot to a top secret project in the Black Forest of Austria. During this period he observed the aircraft described above. It was saucer-shaped, about twenty-one feet in diameter, radio-controlled, and mounted several jet engines around the exterior portion of the craft. He further described the exterior portion as revolving around the dome in the center which remained stationary. It was his responsibility to photograph the object while in flight. He asserted he was able to retain a negative of a photograph he made at 7,000 meters (20,000 feet). According to him, the above aircraft was designed and engineered by a German engineer whose present whereabouts is unknown to him. He also assumed the secrets pertaining to this aircraft were captured by Allied Forces. He said this type of aircraft was responsible for the downing of at least one American B-26 airplane. He has become increasingly concerned because of the unconfirmed reports concerning a similar object and denials the United States has such an aircraft. He feels such a weapon would be beneficial in Vietnam and would prevent the further loss of American lives which was his paramount purpose in contacting the Federal Bureau of Investigation.

Can the entire UFO mystery be explained as a result of the flights of classified and prototype aircraft of the type described above in official files? Or do we really have alien visitors? Or could the real answer be, incredibly, both?

Reported German Disk Aircraft Types

A. Introduction

The dominant explanation for the origin of UFOs is the Extraterrestrial Hypothesis (ETH). Other hypotheses have been proposed as supplementary to ETH, among them the so-called "Nazi Hypothesis". Witness testimony, photographs, and purported plans exist to suggest that some Unidentified Flying Objects (UFOs) may have originated in pre-1946 Germany.

This evidence has been downplayed for a number of reasons. An obvious factor is that documents and witness testimony tend to be in a foreign language. The universal revulsion felt for the Nazi regime and its occult origins is another factor. Then, too, some of the data seem to have been filtered through neo-Nazi sources.

Most difficult for some, perhaps, is that the implicitly underlying physics for these craft must have been concealed from most of us for 60 years or more. However, the ETH also involves a similar element of concealment, if only for a shorter duration.

Here are listed and described very tentatively the variety of reportedly-German UFOs. Probably errors, omissions, and duplications are present. Such is likely in any first listing of varied phenomena.

B. Craft of Advanced Technology Based on Known Physics

1.) Feuerball (fireball). A pilotless, radar-neutralizing craft. Established details agree significantly with pilot descriptions of most World War II and Korean War "Foo-fighters". Implicit are both use in the Pacific Theater of World War II (via design or hardware transfer to Axis-partner Japan) and some survival of the Phenomenon for a few years after that war.

The Feuerball was a disc of about five feet in diameter and was powered by flat turbo-jet. A rich fuel mixture with additives produced an ionizing glow about the craft. The intention was to interfere with a night fighter's electrical controls. It was radio controlled on launch. A heat-sensing device held the Feuerball close to the exhaust vents on the side of the propeller-driven fighter planes. A klystron tube transmitted impulses which interfered with the fighter's radar and made the Feuerball invisible to ground radar. Parts are known to have been recovered by Allied intelligence. References 1,4.

2.) Kugelblitz (ball-lightning). Larger than a Feuerball, some 27 meters (89 feet) in diameter and eight meters (26 feet) high. it was test flown at Kahla 04/1945. Only one combat use is documented. Several were brought to U.S. References 4,5.

C. Electrogravitic Craft Based on Currently Unknown Physics.

1.) Original Vril Society Craft. Said to be a "time machine", it underwent two years of experiment. Dismantled early in 1924 (!) and shipped to Augsburg. The design was said to have been based on channeled information from a supposed planet orbiting the star Aldebaran (Alpha Tauri). Disposition unknown. Reference 8.

3.) RFZ-2. Completed at the end of 1934 by the Vril Society. length was 16 feet, and it was the first with "magnetic field impulse steering". It was operational in 1940 as seen in a photograph taken over an ocean, said to be the South Atlantic.

5.) RFZ-5. Also known as Haunebu I (note: Nebel=haze or smoke). Flew 08/1939. Diameter 83 feet. Photograph exists, said to have been taken over Prague. With a crew of eight, said to have reached 12,000 mph and upper atmosphere. Claimed to have been equipped with two laser (apparent anachronism) guns. References 3,5, 8.

6.) RFZ-6 (Haunebu II). Work began before the end of 1942. Various shapes, 85 feet to 100 feet in diameter and 30 to 36 feet high, were produced. A 3200 knot speed is assigned, making for near-space capability. One plan shows a Donar Ray Gun (!) in a turret on the underside. Some had sleeping quarters. a deep-space variant was said to be 234 feet in diameter. At least one side-view drawing with data survives and it bears an uncanny resemblance to an orthographic projection which has been made from the famous Adamski and Darbishire UFO photographs. References 3, 5, 7, 8.

7.) Haunebu III. An SS E4-planned deep-space disc craft. Various photographs show design variations. Over 400 feet in diameter. A side view drawing with data survives. Reportedly, U.S. found none References 3, 5, 7,8. A Haunebu IV also is reported (reference 9)

These discs had internal or external propeller blades which were linked by a wheel around the rim. Jet propulsion was used for horizontal travel and control. Drawings appear in Reference 6 and elsewhere.

1.) 1V1. Developed and built by BMW in 1941 - 2. Had control problems. Distinguished from later variants by a slight taper on the bottom of the wheel. Reference 5.

2.) 1V2.

3.) 2V1. Flat on the bottom of the wheel.

4.) 2V2.

5.) 2V3.

6.) 3. This model has entirely different shape: it's an enclosed discus except for small triangular apertures near the rim of the upper surface. The cockpit was a slightly protruding dome, and a retractable technicians' compartment was centered on the bottom surface which was much less rounded than the top surface. Sometimes referred to as the Bellonzo-Schriever-Miethe discus, one version was as large as 225 feet in diameter and registered 1250 mph. References 5,6.

7.) Omega Disc. A Miethe design having a streamlined cabin on top which from overhead resembled the letter Omega. Reference 6.

These types may have combined what we now consider known and unknown physics. The Vril craft were of 20 to 40 feet in diameter. Reference 8.

1.) RFZ7T. Work began in 1942 on a discus craft by Miethe, Joined by Bellonzo then Schiever and Habermohl. A "reliable, functional light craft". Reference 8.

2.) Vril I. A 36 foot single seat craft, which was armed and tested before the end of 1942. Flew 7000 mph from its Brandenburg test site. Could instantly change direction. References 3, 5, 8.

3.) Vril II. An air-water motor in the center of the craft spun rapidly like a tornado, thus according to Schauberger's implosion principle, neutralizing gravity, as with the Vril I craft. diameter also similar. Reference 5. Vril VII and Vril IX also reported. Reference 9.

Reports persist that between 1937 and 1945 the Nazis established external bases in Amazonia, Patagonia, the Canadian arctic, Northern Norway, and especially, in German-claimed Antarctica which previously had been claimed by Norway and is still is known as Queen Maud Land. At the end of World War II, two large cargo submarines (and reportedly others) voyaged at least as far as Argentina. The Antarctic location, known as Neueschwabenland (New Swabia), is said to have been fortified and attacked by U.S. and other forces, unsuccessfully, in 1945. A 1957-8 attack, which exploded nuclear weapons, is said to have destroyed New Swabia.

Post-1945 sightings and even photographs of craft resembling German Discs exist. The Adamski and Darbishire photos are dated 1952 and 1954 respectively.

G. UFO Crash/Retrieval Reports Possibly of German Craf.

1.) East of Heligoland island, North Sea, 1946. Reported as 99 feet in diameter and 70 feet high. Seven charred bodies of human men with excellent teeth reportedly were recovered. A curious fact: applicants for the SS were not allowed to have any fillings in their teeth.

2.) Spitsbergen (Svalbard) in the Artic Ocean, 1939-46 and May, 1952. One account is similar in craft and recovered bodies to the Heligoland description. One report describes 46 jets on a ring-type aircraft. A downed German flight to Spitsbergen is alleged. Reference 8.

3.) "TEX-MEX", in Nuevo Leon state, Mexico, 25-30 miles southwest of Laredo, Texas. Craft is described as of bolted construction, 99 feet in diameter and 70 feet high. One conclusion is that it was a U.S. test of a Flügelrad which contained a rhesus monkey Control was lost, and craft crashed and burned. References 5, 6.

H. Conclusion

It is well established that Allied intelligence agents scoured central Europe late in the war and afterward. Plans, technology, and even persons were taken to the victorious countries. Some 30 discs are said to be among the trove.

It is interesting that we have the collapse of the Soviet Union to thank for the revelation of some UFO events in that part of the world. Could it be that the earlier collapse of another repressive, highly controlled regime allowed knowledge, photographs, and plans to escape into the public domain?

Reference 9 has added a new information to the German UFO puzzle. it includes what is claimed to be a list of 261 craft built toward the end of World War II. If I read the jiggling Video correctly, built were 57 Haunebu I. 106 Haunebu II of various designs, 14 Haunebu III, and 84 various Vril types, of the Vrils, 17 were of 11.5 meter (38 foot) diameter.

Most sensationally, reference 9 tells of a desperate plan to send a German-Japanese team on a one way journey to Mars in a Haunebu III just before the Nazi regime collapsed. This type is described as the only class built with enough speed (Earth ground level escape velocity=7 miles per second) to do the job.

What are to make of all this? The books can be read, and the video segments viewed again and again. it seems that either an enormously complex hoax has been constructed by Neo Nazis or others, or there is some element of truth. This dilemma resembles the MJ-12 document matter or the UFO panoply itself.

If German UFOs are a hoax, it's magnificent. I've counted ten standardized single page documents which show a side-view drawing at the top and technical data below. Careful reading with the aid of a German-English dictionary confirms performance and other data related to the depicted craft.

At least 30 different photographs alleged to be of German UFOs appear to in the cited works, especially the videos. Some are of craft in the air which show the same optical distortions we see in "standard" UFO pictures. Implied is either the optical refraction produced by extreme magnetic field or some time-warp. A few pictures show craft on the ground with personnel or support equipment.

All I can suggest is what is necessary with the "conventional" matter of the UFO and alien presence: examine all evidence you can find and decide for yourself.

Martin Caidin, in Black Thursday (1960), told of silver discs encountered during the 1943 Schweinfurt Raid. Archivists at the National Archives could not locate confirmation of this report. There are, however, other references to small silver discs.

Under the heading "Miscellaneous Phenomena," in a report of A-2 Section of the 42d Bomb Wing, the following appears:

Also, on 18 October [1944], a shower of silver objects about the size of silver dollars was reported in the vicinity of Alfonsine. These objects were seen floating at 10,500 feet and descending very slowly.

In December 1944 the New York Times reported that American pilots over Germany were reporting silver spheres.

A spokesman at Army Air Force headquarters said that the only reports reaching Washington were from the newspapers and that no reports were received from the theater (New York Times, December 14 and 21, 1944).

There have however been several reports of the phenomenon which is described as "silver balls", seen mainly below 10,000 feet; tentative suggestions have been made as to their origin and purpose, but as yet no satisfactory explanation has been found.

The bulletin for June 4, 1945, discusses reports from Japan:

Mention has previously been made of German airborne controlled missiles Hs.298, Hs.293, X4 and Hs.117. Many reports have been received from Bomber Command crews of flaming missiles being directed at, and sometimes following the aircraft, suggesting the use of remote control and/or homing devices. It is known that the Germans kept their Japanese Allies informed of technical developments and the following report, taken verbatim from Headquarters, U. S. A. F. P. O. A. G.2 Periodic Report No. 67, further suggests that the Japanese are using similar weapons to those reported by our own crews:

During the course of a raid by Super-Fortresses on the Tachikawa aircraft plant, and the industrial area of Kawasaki, both in the Tokyo area, a number of Super-Fortresses reported having been followed or pursued by "red balls of fire" described as being approximately the size of a basketball with a phosphorescent glow. Some were reported to have tails of blinking light. These "balls" appeared generally out of nowhere, only one having been seen to ascend from a relatively low altitude to the rear of a B-29. No accurate estimate could be reached as to the distance between the balls and the B-29's. No amount of evasion of the most violent nature succeeded in shaking the balls. They succeeded in following the Super-Fortresses through rapid changes of altitude and speed and sharp turns, and held B-29s' courses through clouds. One B-29 reported outdistancing a ball only by accelerating to 295 mph, after which the pursuing ball turned around and headed back to land.

Individual pursuits lasted as long as six minutes, and one ball followed a Super-Fortress 30 miles out to sea. The origin of the balls is not known. Indication points to some form of radio-direction, either from the ground or following enemy aircraft. The apparent objective of the balls, no doubt, is destruction of the Super-Fortresses by contact. Both interception and AA [anti-aircraft] have proved entirely ineffective, the enemy has apparently developed a new weapon with which to attempt countering our thrusts.

SEOUL, Aug 2 (AP) - Those "flying saucers" have popped up in Korea and Japan.

A Canadian destroyer reported sighting two such objects July 10 and recorded them on its radar, it was learned today. A navy report placed the objects two miles high and seven miles away.

A second report dismissed the radar find as the planet Jupiter.

One officer commented, however: "Jupiter doesn't come in pairs and it is several million miles out of range of our radar."

In Tokyo Kosuke Miyazaki of the central meteorological observatory said he saw a greenish-white thing with a tail flying thru the sky last night. Makoto Sakai, a university student, saw it, too. He said it was bluish-white and split into halves before disappearing. Another witness said it was orange-white. Dr. Hideo Hirose of the Tokyo astronomical observatory said it must have been a meteor.

WASHINGTON, Feb. 19 (AP) - The latest version of the five-year-old flying saucers - strange-looking orange globes over Korea - is being looked into by the Air Force.

Bomber crewmen have reported seeing globe-shaped objects of an orange color on flights over Korea on the nights of Jan. 29 and 30. An Air Force spokesman said today that the incidents were being investigated.

Bomber crewmen, who reported seeing the globes over the Wonsan area in Eastern Korea and the Sunchon area in west central Korea, said the objects were about three feet in diameter and had remained with a B-29 bomber over Wonsan for about five minutes and with a B-29 over Sunchon for about one minute.